Best Practice Guides for the Assessment and Verification of Competence Based Awards

The Learning Network and AEV have identified the potential need for a comprehensive and coherent definition of best practice in assessment and verification. There is currently a lack of generally accepted identifications and examples of best practice in the sector. This contributes to inconsistency and uncertainty amongst practitioners at all stages of the process. The Learning Network and AEV are proposing to develop a series of best practice guides covering all significant aspects of the assessment and verification of competence based awards. The intention is to ensure that there are best practice guides available to cover aspects of the assessment and verification such as:

The project to identify and develop these guides will be in three phases. Funding has currently been agreed for the first phase, with the intention to proceed into the second and third phases of the project should the need be identified and resources be available.

Phase 1

This stage will comprise research into the current materials available. The research will involve desk based research and consultation with assessors, verifiers, learning providers and other key players. An analysis at the end of this stage will determine:

  1. the quantity and range of the material currently available
  2. the quality, currency and accessibility of the material
  3. gaps in provision where there are no relevant or appropriate materials
  4. the requirements of the assessment and verification sector for provision of best practice guides
  5. a detailed proposal for the second phase of the project

The consultation will include assessors, verifiers, learning providers and awarding bodies. Focus groups will be held throughout the country, one in each region and will be widely publicised. The purpose of the consultation will be to establish a set of criteria by which the quality and relevance of the currently available material will be judged. The consultation will also identify the areas of practice where best practice guides are required. Desk research will establish the range of material currently available, its source and status and its accessibility. This will involve searching current publications to locate published material and to establish its cost, availability and copyright status. We will also be contacting relevant key players such as learning providers, awarding bodies, regulatory and advisory bodies in the sector, in order to confirm the existence and availability of materials. This material will also be categorised as to its accessibility, cost and copyright status. During this phase we will also research information available via the internet in order to establish its provenance and relevance.

Phase 2

This phase will be the key stage when the guides will be developed and produced. Following the findings from the research in Phase 1, the aspects of practice to be covered by the guides will be determined. The final format of the guides will be electronic, enabling printing as required. However, it may be necessary to also produce some form of hard copy; this will be part of the consultative process.

Throughout this process key players will be part of a project steering group, who will agree first and final drafts of each guide. The steering group will represent all key areas of the assessment and verification community and will ensure that the guides encompass significant, current and emerging theories, practice and issues for the sector.

Phase 3

This stage will involve the launch and subsequent dissemination of the guides. This will include a range of approaches including conferences, targeted workshops, web pages and professional media publicity.

Phase 4

This phase will consist of monitoring, review and evaluation and will be ongoing during the short and medium tern period after the launch of the guides. It will provide information on take up, impact and perception of the guides.

The consultation process is now well underway, many of you will have attended one of the focus groups and have participated in determining the criteria for the project and to identifying the needs of the sector. The project has been overwhelmingly positively received with the vast majority of you welcoming the idea and responding enthusiastically. It has been interesting that broadly similar responses are coming out of all the groups - this is encouraging and the full feedback from the groups will be posted on both websites shortly.

If you have any views on the above report please do not hesitate in contacting me, info@ava.org.uk